FUKUOKA, Japan, — Katie Ledecky eased to her 20th gold medal overall at the World Aquatics Championships, powering to a fifth women’s 1,500 meters freestyle title after Matthew Richards led a British 1-2 in the men’s 200-meter freestyle on Tuesday.
Ledecky, a seven-time Olympic champion, went into the race as the firm favorite, going over 13 seconds quicker than Italy’s Simona Quadarella — the next-best — in the heats and was under her world record time after a blistering start to the final.
But Ledecky’s pace dropped slightly after the American took a huge lead, and the 26-year-old touched the pad in 15 minutes, 26.27 seconds to finish 17.04 seconds faster than Quadarella, who settled for silver while China’s Li Bingjie took bronze.
It was the perfect response for Ledecky, who was dethroned and left disappointed by the record-breaking Ariarne Titmus in Sunday’s 400-meter freestyle event.
“I feel good,” Ledecky said. “It hurt a lot, but I’m really happy with the outcome. I’m just having a lot of fun this week.
“It’s just a lot of hard work and really great people around me — my coaches since I started swimming since I was 6, and my really great teammates.”
Earlier, Richards finished strongly to bag the gold ahead of compatriot Tom…
